Chapter Text
The biting cold winds of the land of winter with ever-growing snowstorms kept many people inside their homes, snuggled around the wooden fireplace with the warmth of their families by their side, watching as the cinders glowed from beneath the coal and wood, with mugs of piping hot cocoa on hand. Blowing away at the translucent tendrils of steam that it gave off, they would cuddle under the blankets, with a tale or two to tell.
He was the opposite. He embraced the cold, as it reminded him of his hometown, of the nation he served under the Fatui. The Tsaritsa would often send him away to Liyue for business affairs, but as soon as the letter of permission arrived, he had wasted no time in making his way back.
After greeting his family and spending some time with them, he set out to go boar hunting the next day. There was a weird sense of satisfaction he got whenever his arrow found its mark, watching the beast writhing in pain until it finally fell. It was something which he enjoyed doing, even though his aim was off sometimes.
And here he was now, riding out on his horse through the pine trees that littered the woods. Snow settled on their leaves in a dense layer, like a white carpet. The sound of the horse's feet against the snow was lonely amongst the tranquil yet eerie silence of the forest. The only piece of clothing he wore which was suited for the cold weather was a fur-padded coat.
He was right on the outskirts of Snezhnaya, somewhere near the border which separated it from Khaenri'ah. Gazing to his left, he could see the castle belonging to the royal family in the distance. If the Tsaritsa knew he went so close to enemy quarters for something as mundane as boar hunting, he would probably get an earful.
Sometimes, he felt that she underestimated him too much. He had a hydro vision, could wield both dual blades and a bow, thus entitling him capable of fighting both from a distance and up close. There was a reason he was a Harbinger after all.
The sun shone lazily above them, its warmth doing nothing to change the cold weather surrounding him. As soon as he was right on the edge he slowed the horse down to a trot, looking out for any animals.The area was completely deserted, much to his surprise.
It wasn't possible that hunters would've already come here and caught all the game, because it was a strict rule that citizens should not be around these parts, for their own safety.
A shrill death cry of a boar echoed through the forest, immediately gaining his attention. He rode his horse further up north, looking out for any other people.
There was a clearing up ahead which he couldn't really see properly from this distance. To avoid being caught he jumped off his horse, tethering it to the tree.
"Be right back malyshka. Stay here, all right?"
He stroked the horse's nose fondly, ignoring the way it nuzzled its head into his palm, a silent plea for him to not leave. But he did, running off into the twisted maze of trees, going forward until he saw the ground rise up into a small mound with a snow-less patch of mud below it. He hastily made his way up, crawling into a bunch of hostas and blended in with the leaves.
He crouched until he was right behind them, peeking out from the foliage carefully.
There were two girls in the middle. One had brown hair and wore a red uniform. It was the other girl who caught his eyes. She had beautiful short blonde hair and eyes akin to molten gold. Her whole attire basically screamed white, from the lilies in her hair to the frock she wore. It had unique designs all over it, lines of blue stretching across the fabric, even on the scarf she wore that wobbled gently in the slow breeze. She also wore shoulder length gloves with gauntlets, and black gloves that shied away from covering all her fingers except her thumb. There was a fur coat draped over her bare shoulders to protect her from the cold.
He watching curiously as she dispersed the golden bow she held in her hand into thin air. The figure went down on one knee and peered at the carcass, letting out a satisfied hum.
"Alright, I think we got it. Xiangling would be pleased." She proceeded to pull out a knife from the stockings that ran till her thigh, only to be rudely interrupted by the girl next to her.
"Your highness, I don't think it is wise to-"
The blonde-haired girl rolled her eyes, "I already told you, feel free to call me Lumine. We're outside, not in the castle." She muttered, slicing away a portion of meat from the dead boar. "Also, I am very capable of cutting meat, Amber. Not all princesses are afraid of getting their hands dirty."
"Sorry. Force of habit." She grimaced, walking towards the kneeling girl. "I'm not saying you aren't capable per se, but just... be careful."
"You worry too much." Lumine laughed, eyes scanning the body. "The worst thing that could happen is me slicing a finger off."
"Exactly!" she hissed, face distraught. "Prince Aether will have my head if there is as much as a scratch on you."
"Please, you're exaggerating." She rolled her eyes again, a smile gracing her features. "The worst he'll do is give us a proper scolding so that we won't do it again. Though his earful would probably be meant for me rather than you."
Before Amber could retort any further there was a sound of rustling bushes to their right, which earned the attention of the two. Amber backed off as Lumine frowned, summoning her bow and rapidly fitting an arrow on it. She brought the string up to her ear, waiting patiently as the dead silence surrounding them turned suffocating.
Childe silently cursed when he realized that she was pointing her bow in his direction and slowly crawled back as silently as he could, hoping to take his leave. Hey, he did not trust this random woman enough to not shoot his head off (On accident, of course). He couldn't believe that a girl, and that too this.. short, was good at any such activities. Her being a princess made his doubt worsen, though the mark on the dead boar said otherwise.
"Lumine maybe we should just leave." Amber pointed to the horses tied to the pine trees, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder.
"Whoever you are, come out." Lumine ordered, gaze trained on the bushes before them.
Silence.
"Alright, your funeral."
When those words left her lips she let go of the hold on her arrow and it whizzed through the air like a missile locked onto a target, missing Childe's face by a hair's breath. Surprised at the sudden assault he slightly shifted which led to one of the most embarrassing incidents in his entire life.
The snow near the edge caused him to slip and fall backwards, and he couldn't help but let out a groan as his back made impact with the cold ground, landing exactly on the snowless patch on the forest floor. As if his ego wasn't bruised already the two girls came running over at the noise. Lumine didn't hesitate to point her blade at the fallen man, who just stared at her, out of breath from the sudden fall.
It was kind of hot, actually; The way she prodded his neck with her sword as if she could slice his throat any moment (which she probably could.)
Fair skin and orange hair. Slight freckles dotting his features and blue eyes as empty as the depths of the ocean. She just knew it.. he was a Snezhnayan.
"Why were you stalking us? Did the Tsaritsa send you?"
"I didn't stalk you." he scoffed, because his principles clearly went against such underhanded methods. "I was wandering around looking for boar meat when I heard one dying. Came to check out what it was and saw you both over its carcass."
Lumine surveyed him, as if she was thinking whether or not she should trust this random dude who was staring at them from the bushes.
"Who are you exactly?"
"The name's Chiii- Ajax." If he had any chance at getting together with this woman, he might as well have ruined it now by the way she was frowning at him. If he had told her his name was Childe she would've either killed him right on the spot or would've taken off for the castle screaming 'stranger danger.'
Though the second one seemed slightly less plausible.
"Alright.." she was still wary of him. He would have to change that. "Where are you from and what were you doing here?"
"I live in Morepesok." He exclaimed, letting out a grunt when he attempted to sit up. "And I already told you, I was looking for frozen boar meat. But by the looks of it, you already scared the shit out of them and forced them into hiding."
She frowned again, leaning down on one knee as she looked at him clutching his right hand.
"Can we trust you?" The princess asked, honey eyes glazed over with concern as she eyed his hurt limb.
"What do you think?" He flashed her a smoulder, Amber placing her hands over her eyes in frustration. "A poor, handsome young lad got hurt because of you, and you're asking him whether you can trust him?"
"Alright. I have no problem with leaving you here. Have fun partying with the termites."
"Wait a minute!" he made an attempt to reach out for her as she stood up, wincing immediately. "Do I look like someone who'd give you trouble?"
"I don't know.." she tapped her chin, faking a thoughtful expression. "Snezhnayans can be quite troublesome. And we are enemies, after all."
"Well-"
"Who's to say I won't leave you here to die in the cold?"
She continued, watching his features turn into a pout. That was kind of cute, actually.
"But it is completely of my goodwill that I agree to take you to the palace so you can heal up. Just.. don't stab me in the back, alright?" She grinned, extending a hand so that he could grab on and get up.
.
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.
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Amber and Ajax were currently seated near the window in Lumine's room, all the way in the Black Castle. She had brought him home like she promised, and they both were currently waiting for the castle's nurse to show up.
"I've called for Barbara." She replied, closing the door behind them. "She should be here any minute now."
"You still think this is a good idea?" Amber asked, raising an eyebrow at the Snezhnayan seated before them.
"It's fine." She shot her a smile. "If he dared to try anything we'll just toss him into the Abyss. There's a crack in the forest of nightmares."
Memories from long ago clouded his senses. It was something he had tossed away to the deepest, darkest corners of his mind. His fall into the Abyss cost him the light in his ocean blue eyes. It was the most terrifying experience in his life, having fallen into the darkest corners of the world with nothing but a loaf of bread and a rusty greatsword.
But he couldn't help but feel a sliver of excitement at the thought of being able to go back there to challenge those monstrous beasts which he oh so feared going up against in his youth.
Lumine stared at him in confusion when his eyes lit up in excitement, and could only sigh. "Looks like quite the masochist here."
No one else spoke after that, silence filling the room like a blanket of snow covering the kingdom outside. Soon enough there was a knock at the door and a concerned voice asking for permission to enter the princess's chambers.
"Your highness, are you hurt?"
A blonde girl peeked out from behind the door, hair tied up in twin pigtails. Her blue eyes widened when she spotted the orange-haired man seated on the other end of the room.
"I-Is that a-"
"Barbara!! Great timing." She exclaimed rather loudly, which frightened her even more when Amber ushered her into the room, making sure she closed the door behind her.
"To answer your question, yes, I am a Snezhnayan."
She almost fainted on the spot.
"Listen, we have a perfect explanation for this." Lumine pulled Barbara closer and out of Ajax's earshot. The three girls talked for a while, obviously ignoring the lonely man who just sat there grinning at them when they turned their heads to cast him a look occasionally.
"Alright.."
Barbara took a tentative step towards the orange-haired man who just watched the scene in amusement.
"Could you show me your arm, please?"
He did so and Barbara gently applied pressure to various parts of his arm, stopping when she pressed on a particular spot which elicited a hiss from him.
"Thankfully, nothing serious." She sighed, taking his arm in her hand. Tendrils of concentrated hydro energy passed through his skin, blending in with his nerves. "But if Sir Dainsleif or Prince Aether were to hear about this then-"
It seemed as if the heavens detested Lumine because at that moment the door clicked open and all eyes swiftly turned to the blonde man that entered the room, massaging his forehead.
"Lumine I have to ask your opinion on something. Regarding this year's fe-"
He stopped mid-speech when his eyes landed on the young Snezhnayan, who just gave him a friendly wave.
"Aether, I can explain-"
"Oh, so you're the one who diverted your kingdom's trade routes so that they pass around Snezhnaya instead of through them." Childe snorted, smirking all the while. "Too scared to let your goods pass through our country?"
"What the fuck is a Snezhnayan doing here?!" He shouted, confusion and anger combining in a ball of emotions. "Guards, we have an intruder in the palace!"
"Wait, no, this is a misunderstanding!" Lumine shook her head as the guards stationed in the hallway rushed over to her quarters at the commotion.
"Lumine, I demand an explanation." He grit his teeth behind closed lips, switching his gaze back and forth from him sister and the stranger.
"This poor man stumbled into our territory and got hurt by one of our ruin guards." She lied, face remaining indifferent. "So I offered to take him to the palace so we could have Barbara heal him up."
"I stumbled into your territory??" Ajax laughed, ignoring the death glares the princess sent his way. "I believe it was you who set foot on Snezhnayan land in search of frozen boar."
"You crossed the border? Alone?!" Aether turned to his sister, eyes blown wide in shock.
"You're believing a complete stranger over your own sister?" She asked, folding her arms over her chest. "And technically, I wasn't alone. I was with Amber."
"We're having a talk." He grabbed her by the hand, much to her annoyance. "Barbara, heal the man and make sure he's alright. Amber, send for Dainslief and have him place this Snezhnayan under his watch. We can't trust them."
He frowned at the casual smile the young man wore and with one last glance at the room he dragged his sister out, shutting the door behind him.